No need to contain yourself

Selling containers is one of the pillars of running a successful garden center, but at the same time, containers become one of the most difficult items to merchandise without taking valuable floor space away from quicker selling items such as annuals and certain hard goods. We all have containers on our premises, but how do we make those pots work for us? Take control of your containers and reap the benefits of an old trick of the trade: hypnotize your customers with not only a vortex of color, but diversity as well.
 

Hypnotize with color

Don’t worry, you don’t have to take lessons in order to learn how to hypnotize your clients with container color. All you just need to do is follow a few basic ideas. Colors are much more than just a coat of glaze or a wash on a container. Certain people with unique personalities will gravitate toward different colors. Typically the outgoing, more expressive customer will go for more non-traditional colors such as lime green and perhaps florescent orange. It’s great to know these people exist, but you also have to learn what the balance is between those who are always going to be over the top with color selection, and those who like to use more muted colors and allow the flowers to make the show.

Merchandising colors in groups is going to be your saving grace when it comes to making a display that is both visually appealing and “shoppable.” Too many times customers will come into a store (garden center or not), and feel intimidated by taking items directly out of an intricate display. A prime example would be IKEA - when you visit one of their magnificent stores and walk through a vignette, you want nothing more than to reach out and pick the display apart. That’s a big no-no. You have to go to a separate floor to acquire the piece that you want. This isn’t something you want in your garden center.

When customers must walk farther, sometimes past other pleasing containers (or anything else for that matter), those extra moments give them another opportunity to change their minds. They will either give up on finding what they saw in the display and settle for something else, or just give up all together and leave empty-handed. Confusion shouldn’t be an issue. Make certain that you display your containers in a way that people can pick from the display but not feel overwhelmed by it.
 

Provide something for everyone

If you’re going to provide your customers with an excellent selection of containers, you have to make sure you have the muscles to stand behind them. It’s easy enough to have nothing but the lightweight polyresin pots, but that is going to only fill a small niche of your total customer base. A complete container selection must have both lightweight polyresin pots and others such as terra cotta, glazed pottery and our old favorite, concrete. There are arguing points for all of these different containers, but at the end of the day, a sale will be made because of all of those options; there will always be some sort of container for somebody.

Make sure you make your customer aware of the differences of the containers they’re offered. Looking at two pots that look seemingly the same, there can be multitudes of differences that the customer should know about, such as if the container is suitable to be left outside. Without informing the customer the bad with the good, you can walk into a bad situation as far as public relations is concerned.

If your customer takes an indoor pot outdoors and it falls to pieces, you’ll have a problem. The response will be, “Nobody told me it couldn’t go outside.” Don’t allow this to happen - make your sales staff aware that what leaves the store must be explained to the customer in depth as to what it is and where it is expected to go.

The worst thing that can happen to you as an independent garden center would be to have legal action taken against you because somebody tried to lift a container that they loved, but that was far too large for them to handle. Having able-bodied "loaders" ready at all times is a great start, but also make sure your customers know that these loaders are at their disposal and are there to help them carry whatever it is they’d like to take home with them. Make sure these loaders go out of their way to assist people who look like they might need physical help.
 

You need this, not that

Even with the best container selection, without proper placement in the garden center, you might as well not sell them at all. You should take a few steps to see if your current spot is working or if it’s just a mess. A couple of key things you have to remember about your container section:

Containers take up a large footprint of your store and shouldn’t be shoved in a corner wherever there is space available. Natural light will show off all varieties of containers the best, whereas things like benches and patio furniture don’t need as much light – they need to be in a place where their practicality can be practiced. Weigh these factors against each other, and rearrange accordingly.

Looking over your store, where does your eye get focus first and why? If it’s an ugly area that you need to work on, get to that first. However, your eye should be drawn to a big display of bright, multicolored pots. The diversity of color will bring out a spark in just about anyone with a bit of curiosity. It should also draw interest for those who have a set intention to buy containers.

Containers should never leave alone. Containers have limitless add-on sales that can easily be suggested to your customers: potting soil, flowers, different shrubs that are suitable for the pot, fertilizer for pots, and of course, some nice gardening gloves.

Don’t stay stuck with the same variety of containers. Stay on top of the container market by attending area trade shows and network with those who are in the field but perhaps are not your competitor. Even with your competitor, you can work with each other and instead of seeing them as an enemy, you can see them as a stepping stone. Sharing information openly with “the guy across town” will let your competition know that you’re not cutthroat and also remind him we’re all playing the same game: the little guys against the big box guys.

Of course, you need to have connections to be able to get some of the best deals from your vendors, but there is no shortage of distributors.

As an indie store, you also have to do a quick comparison as to who else out there has anything even close to what you have to offer. Look at the local big box – they’re lucky to have a large corner of the store dedicated to marketing containers, but as far as aesthetically pleasing displays, they are nonexistent. You have a huge leg up on the big boxes in that aspect. You have the ability to go outside and “play” with your containers. Use it to your benefit. Check out Pinterest for trending colors, and always post pictures of your new containers on Facebook. This outlet will conjure up some excitement within your customers, those customers will tell their friends, and that means more cars in your parking lot.

Nikki Weed is a horticulturist and professional adventurer who uses her experiences and knowledge to manage a successful garden center in Greenville, S.C. She can be reached at pepitaweed@gmail.com.